It has been proven that medical marijuana can be safe and effective for treating cancer, AIDS, multiple sclerosis, pain, epilepsy, glaucoma, and other conditions as well. Marijuana is actually less toxic then many of the medicines and drugs that doctors prescribe today to relieve the same symptoms. The tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) contained in this plant, along with many other cannabinoids, cause relief unlike any other drug.

Although marijuana has been proven as a alternative to treating cancer, it is still a dangerous drug. There are other medical options that have the same effect on cancer patients without being as dangerous. Different medicines can diminish pain and cause relief without having as dangerous side effects.

Although marijuana poses some danger, so do most other drugs prescribed by doctors. There are always going to be some sort of side effects. It is a powerful drug, but the dangers associated with it are the same associated with smoking cigarettes. Also, many patients only would need medicinal marijuana for a short amount of time, and therefore would not receive many negative smoking effects. The harms of this drug are within the range tolerated for other medications. Cannabis is one of humanity's oldest medicines;China used it in medicinal tea, and for thousands of years people have used this drug without knowing any negative effects. With this being said, the positive effects of marijuana outweigh the slight risks.

Treating diseases with smoked marijuana isn't a valid option. It has negative effects on the heart, lungs, brain, and immune system no matter how long they've been treated with it. Cannabis weakens the immune system which is very valuable to someone who is undergoing a deadly disease. These patients will become dependent on the drug and even when they are not sickly anymore they will feel the need to use it.

It is proven that marijuana is not an addictive drug if used for only a short amount of time. If it is used over a span of many years, it is possible to become dependent on it. However, this number is still only 9%. Also, as I mentioned before, if a patient is prescribed this drug in order to overcome an illness, they will most likely only be using it for a short period of time. If this is the case, it is nearly impossible for them to become "addicted".

The FDA recently reported that there were not scientific studies that support The use of medical marijuana. If a physician prescribes it in an area where it isn't even legal, they could lose their licenses. There wouldn't be a problem with the FDA is there wasn't an issue with using medical marijuana as a treatment.

Until its prohibition in 1937, extract of Cannabis sativa (marijuana) was one of the top three most prescribed medicines in the US. The active compounds in marijuana are similar to a class of molecules in our bodies called endocannabinoids. Both bind to receptors in the brain and throughout the body called cannabinoid receptors. This system influences our immune system, protects nerve cells from premature death, and influences mood, memory, appetite, sleep and movement. With cancer patients, it relieves nausea resulting from chemotherapy. For patients with AIDS, it increases the appetite for people suffering from severe weight loss. Also, cannabis is proven more effective than opiates in treating long-term chronic pain.

Although cannabis has been used to treat those sicknesses and problems, it was out lawed for a reason. Medical cannabis has been linked to cardiovascular problems and strokes almost as many times it has been proven as an effective treatment. In Sweden, 50,000 people were tested and proven to have a more likely chance of developing schizophrenia is they have smoked. Also people with schizophrenia were more drawn to marijuana than others.

If marijuana is less toxic than many of the drugs that physicians prescribe every day, then why should it not be legalized for medical purposes? Although cannabis has been smoked widely in Western countries for more than four decades, there have been no reported cases of lung cancer or emphysema attributed to marijuana. Professor Lester Grinspoon, MD, from the Harvard Medical School, comments "I suspect that a day's breathing in any city with poor air quality poses more of a threat than inhaling a day's dose -- which for many ailments is just a portion of a joint -- of marijuana." Every drug has side effects, and most have potential risks. However, no other drug can do exactly what medical marijuana would do for a patient. Therefore, it should be legalized in order to benefit those suffering from illnesses such as AIDS and cancer.

Medical Marijuana can treat patients of cancer and AIDs, but it leads to more problems. Andrea Bathwell, who used to be the Deputy Director for the White House once said, ""By characterizing the use of illegal drugs as quasi-legal, state-sanctioned, Saturday afternoon fun, legalizers destabilize the societal norm that drug use is dangerous. They undercut the goals of stopping the initiation of drug use to prevent addiction.... Children entering drug abuse treatment routinely report that they heard that 'pot is medicine' and, therefore, believed it to be good for them." Even if marijuana is used for medical purposes, it leads to addiction and that's why it should not be legalized for treatment.